Crosman 2300S target pistol – Part 3 Accuracy!

I knew the 2300S was going to be an accurate pistol, so my day on the range was a pleasant one. I tested all pellets for grouping at 15 yards. That doesn’t sound like a long range, but I was using the target sights provided. In other words, open sights.

None of the pellets I recommended so boldly last week in How to find the best pellet seemed to make a difference. Beeman Kodiaks were the best, but even they were not giving me the groups I had hoped to get. Yes, there is a “but” coming. First, I want to cover some interesting things that turned up during shooting.

The sights are incredible!I have liked the Williams rear sight from the beginning. Once I had the chance to adjust it, however, and see what a fine sight it truly is, my enthusiasm only increased. The click adjustments remain velvety smooth throughout the range, yet each one is as precise as the others. That’s true for both windage and elevation adjustments. The adjustment increments are so small that you can “walk” a pellet into the 10-ring without compromise. With some other sights, you might get close; but, with this one, you’ll be spot-on if you take the time to adjust the sight correctly. Crosman needs to make this sight available as an option for their other pellet pistols, and I can see it on some entry-level 10-meter pistols, too.

Loading is trickyI remarked on this in the second part of this report, and the problem continued while I was target shooting. In fact, I have to rule out wadcutter pellets altogether. They are simply too finicky to load into this pistol. Other short pellets, such as Crosman Pointed and Crosman Premier 7.9-grain pellets, were hard to load, too. What happens is that the pellet gets stuck either in the loading port of the barrel or just before that as it enters the breech. It often flips sideways. If you’re not careful, you’ll have a pellet jammed sideways in the breech. I kept a .177 cleaning rod on my shooting bench and had to use it several times.

On the other hand Beeman Kodiaks and 10.2-grain JSB Exact domed pellets fed very well. The Kodiaks also proved to be the most accurate pellets of the test, which was good. However, that was only after I discovered THE SECRET to making this pistol shoot.

Beeman Kodiaks gave the best groups, once the power was turned all the way up. Shot from a rest at 15 yards with open sights.

What’s the secret?When I dialed the power from midrange all the way up as far as it went, the groups shrank to just over dime size with most pellets. This isn’t a drawback; because, as I reported before, the 2300S gives you way more shots from a powerlet than most other air pistols. So, my advice is to run the gun wide open all the time. The long Lothar Walther barrel keeps the discharge down to a neighbor-friendly level.

I was shooting Gamo Master Points when I upped the power, and the groups suddenly shrank into half the size I’d been seeing. At first, I thought the pellets were completely responsible. While they’re a very good pellet, most others were more accurate on high power, as well.

Gamo Hunter pointed pellets were surprisingly good.

The 2300S was designed for airgun silhouette competition in the IHMSA production class. It will probably be shot from the Creedmore position. (with a handgun, the shooter is lying on his back and holding the pistol steady with one or both legs). In that solid position, this revolutionary new air pistol from Crosman will be almost as accurate as a rifle.

78 thoughts on “Crosman 2300S target pistol – Part 3 Accuracy!”

I am thinking about getting an airsoft sniper rifle and I was wondering if the Super X-9 Swat Sniper Rifle by NeonFire-UHC is a good choice for a begginer.If there are others in that price range that are better please tell meabout this.Thanks and even though I dont write much I still read the colum every day and enjoy it.Thanks.

b.b.Currently own a 2240 and a 1377. I plan to update both with new grips but it’s the sights that I dislike. Any alternatives for either? Red dot makes 2240 heavy and 1377 has a barrel that twists under weight. Thanx for great blogs. Learn more here than in books.

Crosman sells Williams notched and peep sights for 3/8″ dovetail mounting. The way to mount them on a 2240/1377 is to use a steel breech kit. Crosman carries steel breech kits that fit the 2240 or 1377 and have a 3/8″ dovetail. Custom accessories like this can be purchased from Crosman’s online store at http://www.airguns.com/onlinestore. Just click on the custom accessories link.

Pyramyd Air doesn’t carry these Crosman items, but the Beeman Sport Aperature Sight from Pyramyd MAY work (don’t know for sure).

I have an old UK version of the 1377. The only reliable way to load wad-cutters is to hold it vertical, with the barrel pointing at the ground, and drop the pellet into the breach nose first. It takes a few goes to get the knack, but then 99.9% reliable. Would this method work on the 2300S? Seems a shame if you can’t use wad-cutters on a gun with the potential for target use.

I just purchased the 2300S and I agree that the pellet loading problem is a real concern. Many of my best pellets were seemingly not suitable for this gun!Also, the power adjustment screw at the rear of the gun (un)screws “forever” when trying to reduce power; is this normal?Thanx—————–D.G.

The reason the power adjust moves so far is to provide a tighter control over velocity. At least that’s what I think Crosman had in mind.

As I have said many times, I see no difference in accuracy between Kodiaks and Kodiak Match pellets. You will get a benefit from weighing your pellets and grouping them into weight groups. But that effect doesn’t start showing itself until beyond 20 yards.

I’ve had a 2300S about two weeks now, a well-made accurate pistol and easily worth the price. I quickly gave up trying to load “short” pellets and started dropping-in Premier Heavies as follows; hold gun in left hand with muzzle pointed down. Open the bolt and hold it open with your left thumb. Drop pellet into breech pointy-end first. Close bolt, remove safety and shoot. Looks like Crosman has a winner, anybody know if there are wooden grips available for it yet?

Im looking for a target/silhouette pistol. Im willing to spend around $800 but $1000 would be the limit.It must be a PCP or CO2 since the altitude i live at is not aproriate for single or multi pumps.What would you recomend?

I recommend a PCP target pistol. There seems to be a changing of the guard right now. IHMSA who has governed the sport for years is now partnered with the NRA and it is unclear if gthe IHMSA classes continue to exist. So I cannot advise you further untilI find out who’s in charge and what their rules are.

Thank goodness for wonderful wives who buys their guy this pistol on his birthday.

Yep. My wife got me this 2300S recently. Of course my mentioning how much I was in lust for it may have had something to do with it. 🙂

Beautiful gun. Fun to shoot. Love the sights. After getting the trigger pull down to minimum I found it better. I will be getting some nicer wood target grips for it.

Pellet loading is a PITA. My 1377C loads easier. I thought I had seen somewhere in a comment on one of your posted blog entries that Crosman had fixed this but can’t find that comment now. I’ve only tried two pellets so far. Gamo Match and one other unknown brand round nose and both are hard to keep straight when loading but both are shorter pellets. I will have to try other longer and maybe heavier ones.

It may be frustrating getting the pellet to load but that doesn’t take away from the enjoyment of shooting this gun.

It’s Steven again with another question. My English is not good. hope that doesn’t bother you. My question is about “dry fire”. With the co2 cartridge charged, I push the bolt handle up and pulling it all the way back until I hear two clicks, then fire without pellet. This is called “dry fire”. Am I right? And this will damage the pistol. Right? And if I do all the above things only without a co2 cartridge inside my pistol, it won’t hurt the pistol. am I right? Execuse for my entrance level questoins. Thanks in advance.

My 2300S arrived from Pyramid yesterday. Unfortunately, it’s raining quite a bit today, so I don’t know if I’ll be able to shoot it today.

I confess that I was a bit apprehensive about paying $200 for an air pistol. After all, you can buy a rimfire pistol for $220, but I found 2300S appealing for some reason. After getting it out of the box, it definately feels like a real gun. It has good heft to it and very good balance. Best of all, no plastic other than the grips.

I noticed that a common complaint with the 2300S was that the grips feel like they’re slipping when you hold the gun. I knew what they were talking about because I have a 2240 and the grips feel like they’re slipping also. So I kind of knew what to expect. Imagine my surprise, however, when the grips on my 2300S felt quite solid. I’ll probably get wood grips, but Crosman seems to be using better grips. So perhaps you’re right in that Crosman is listening.

One question, the bolt slide seems to be dirty and in need of some lube. Is there a problem with using Hoppes #9? I won’t let it touch the seal. I still have a tube of Crosman’s pelgun oil lying around for that. I may later lube the bolt with Dri-Slide.

Another question has to do with my 2240. It seems that the screw that holds the rear sight won’t hold the sight. It’s as if the screw got stripped out. Do you know where I can get a replacement for the rear sight?

Im looking for 20-25 yard backyard pistol. I’m torn between the daisy 747 and crossman 2300s. How much louder is the 2300s….to loud for neighbors? Does the 747 has enough power to shatter clays at that distance?

Has anyone seen a newer variant with the claimed fixed loading area to confirm this?

thanks so much for the help. I’ll go with the daisy 747 as my b-day pick. I’m partial to daisy as my 1st airgun was a daisy rifle…….I like what I have read about it. The lack of co2 and super stealth lack of noise really excite me. I’ll post back when I finally get it end of the month for my b-day! I will get the 2300s down the road maybe x-mas 🙂

Recently purchased a 2300S…really like this pistol. Problem though-I got a pellet stuck at the end of the barrel (at the the muzzel). How do I get it out? I tried a 177 cleaning rod from the end of the barrel at the the Muzzel…the pellet will not move. Will the barrel come off? How? Thanks for any help!

The pellet will give if you coax it enough. You’ll have to drive it back into the barrel with a section of cleaning rod that you tap with a hammer. Once you get it moving, you should be able to continue to push it down the barrel with hand pressure alone. Just start it about an inch with the hammer, then see if it won’t move on its own. the object is to push it all the way down the bore and out the breech. the bolt has to be retracted for that, of course.

A bigger question is how you got a pellet stuck at the muzzle in the first place. You must have continued to shoot the gun after the gas pressure dropped. That’s not a good idea for this very reason.

Is there more than one pellet stuck in the barrel? If so, you’ll have to apply more force to remove it.

If you don’t feel comfortable doing this job, you might want to find a local gunsmith to do it for you.

Just got my 2300S today, have put maybe 60 rounds thru it it start break-in. Even though I’m very early in the process, a few comments for those considering this gun.First, I love the feel and balance of the gun. Grips, even though plastic, fit me well and provide sufficient stability. I may change to wood later, but to start these are good enough.Second – and this is important – be prepared to work with a gun that is extremely TIGHT when new. By that I mean all tolerances seem very exact, so things tend to “stick” for awhile. When I first opened the breech, I almost thought I had a defective item since it took so much effort to fully open. Don’t be afraid to use steady force to do this, though. It just needs repetition to develop a smoother movement.Same held true in closing the breech. When loading the first pellet, I thought either I had a deformed pellet of the barrel at the breech was machined a millimeter too small. I was afraid I would crush the pellet given the pressure I had to use to fully seat it and lock the lever. Again, I was wrong. After a couple dozen rounds, eveything began to loosen up a tad and become easier. So don’t be afraid of it.The comments I had read about the Williams sight canting about 5 degrees to the left when installed on the rails is true. Here again I thought I had a bad item, but I re-read some posted comments and saw I was not alone (although not all people mention this problem). I’m going to keep playing with the thing to see if I can finally get it to set in a perfect 90 degree upright position. Otherwise, it’s a distraction from an otherwise beautiful and highly accurate sight. I love the click adjustment feature, very precise and moves in tiny increments, then holds them true.The front sight is also as reported, i.e. skinner than the gap in the rear sight, so you have daylight on both sides of the post when properly aligned. Perdonally, I prefer not to hav that, and I don’t know why Crosman doesn’t simply make the front blade wider so as to close it up. I’m going to get bust with a Dremel tool and some very small pieces of hardwood and make a rectangle of sorts the right width to fill the rear sight notch, drill a small hole in the botton, and insert over the front post. Might not be the prettiest thing in the world when done, but I’ll get the sight picture I want.Other items such as trigger pull, maintaining of pressure for 60+ shots, etc. will have to wait for more break-in before comment. But sitting here right now, knowing what I already have found out, I’m 90% sure that in a month, after 1000 rounds thru the barell, I’m oing to have a swett-shooting pistol that I can pop asprin tabs with at 25 feet nine out of 10 times. Mostly due to the gun, not my expertise.

What a great review of your new gun! I can feel your enthusiasm. I’m so impressed by your entire story and experience that I’m going to copy it and post it under the current/active comments section.

Your comment and my answer is appearing under the article that B.B. did on a crossman 2300S (just like yours) back in 2006. Please join airgunners, like you, exchanging ideas, asking questions and answering them on the current comments section. You’ll also find your comments re-posted there as well. You’ll need to copy and paste this link:

Crosman 2300T/s trigger deficiencies can be easily cured. The key is to remove play between the trigger and the sear lever. The easiest way to do so is to place an additional spring between the front part of the trigger and the tube above triger mechanism. Of course smoothing and polishing the sear lever surface that works with the rear part of the trigger is highly recommended.I’ve done this small modification and the trigger works impeccably, light as a feather and no creep at all! Link to the post describing this modification: http://www.airguns.pl/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1729 The post is in Polish, but the picture and photos are self explanatory. Enjoy! This gun is quite different now!

YES, I AGREE LOADING IS QUIT A PROBLEM. I HAVE REMOVED THE BARREL AND POLISHED IT WITH EMERY CLOTH TO A VERY HIGH SHINE AND IT STILL IS VERY DIFFICULT TO LOAD. I SURE HOPE THAT THERE WILL BE AN UPGRADE FOR THIS PROBLEM AT YOUR COST TO EVERY ONE THAT HAS PURCHASED A 2300S. THIS IS THE MOST DIFFICULT AIR PISTOL TO LOAD I HAVE EVER HAD . WHEN DESIGNING THIS GUN WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT WITH THIS PROBLEM. WERE THEY ON VACATION OR DID THEY JUST NOT GIVE A S**T ABOUT THE DIFFICULTY IN LOADING. THIS IS A VERY ACCURATE PISTOL BUT AS STATED LOADING IS A “JOKE” FOR THE PRICE PAID FOR THE GUN. EVERY ONE SOLD SHOULD BE RECALLED AND REPAIRED. PERHAPS A DIFFERENT BREACH OR RAMP CONFIGURATION. WELL I GUESS THIS IS ENOUGH, I COULD COMMENT ON ABOUT THIS GUN ALL DAY LONG ABOUT HOW DISSATISFIED I AM.> AND THAT THERE HAS BEEN NO SUGGESTION OF A REMEDY ON HOW TO REPAIR IT. GUN IS FOR SALE !!!!!!!!!!!! IT HAS NOT BEEN SHOT VERY MUCH LIKE MAYBE 200 PELLETS IT’S TO DAMN HARD TO LOAD !!!!!!!!

Hi BB, yes, I know, you wrote this back in 2006…. 🙂 After reading this, I’m thinking to mod my 2240 with a Lothar Walther barrel. I’m purchasing one from a local supplier. How can I tell if it’s a “real” LW barrel. Crosman has two 10.1″ barrrels and only the LW is match grade. The supplier gave me the OEM part number as 2300-102, but it’s not the same on the 2300S parts list (2300-002). Do you know if these are the same? If not, do you have a contact at PA or Crosman that know? Thanks for your help!

Hi BB, back in Feb I was thinking of spending the $$$ and purchase the 10.1″ Lothar Walther barrel for my 2240…until I read your 2300T piece on “The OTHER miracle handgun”. Appears the Crosman 10.1″ barrel performed similarly as the Lother Walther. Given the big price difference, do you feel the Crosman barrel is better value? I don’t compete, but would like an accurate gun. Is the Lother Walther too much barrel for a Walmart 2240?

Hi BB, the Lothar Walther arrived yesterday. I installed it right away and did some test shots. The lead-free wadcutter pellets I was using had flattened skirts after firing. I haven’t noticed this in my other pellet guns. Is this due to the choke or is the barrel defective? Have you seen this before?

Hi BB, the skirts appear to be squeezed flat, no longer a conical shape. I will collect them to determine if all were like that. I have not a chance to check accuracy yet, but they am getting 1″ groupings at 25′. I know it can do better. Judging from your test of the 2300S the LW barrel should shoot dime sized groups. I don’t have the 2300S, but rather a 2240 with a LW barrel; stock springs and valve, power adjuster. At full power, with a 2240 stock hammer spring, it was clocking at 600 fps using .177 Daisy Precision Max flathead lead-free pellets. Daisy tells me they weigh in at 4.94 grains, somewhat lighter that other alloy pellets. Does the barrel have to break in? I will update after a few more tests this weekend. I’m concerned about the crushed skirts.

Hi BB, the pellet could actually be hanging up on the air transfer port. I swapped out the stock bolt with an extended probe bolt and appears the skirts are in much better shape. I guess the extended probe pushes the pellet in further pass the transfer port. Honestly, I haven’t noticed this before using the stock bolt that came with the Crosman steel breech. Does a pellet usually sit in the barrel on or passed the transfer port?

The goal is for the pellet to be just in front of the transfer port. But as you know, every pellet is different. Those with large cavities allow the probe to enter farther and they don’t get pushed in far enough.